Today's vehicles, and in particular passenger cars are often provided with roof-mounted external radio antennas which have a characteristic “shark fin” design. However, there are some problems associated with this design. For instance, in order to achieve an optimal color-match with the overall appearance of the vehicle, the antenna should preferably be provided in the same color as the car body, which may cause color-match problems if the antenna needs to be replaced. Additionally, color-match problems may arise due to the difference in material characteristics between the car body and the shark fin antenna (i.e., metal versus plastic).
The shark fin design may also cause performance and durability issues, such as an increased aerodynamic drag-force and problems with damaged sealings and water leaks. Furthermore, the position of the shark fin antenna at the rear end of the vehicle is a radio shadow position, which is disadvantageous for receiving signals transmitted in the front of the vehicle.
In an attempt to solve some of these problems, integrated vehicle antennas have been developed without externally mounted and protruding parts. As an example, a mounting arrangement for a plurality of integrated antennas is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,118,410. The mounting arrangement comprises a windshield area with an upper horizontal border that is extended further up/backwards towards the rear end of the car. An extended roof portion, i.e., “shelf portion”, is located below the windshield at the upper horizontal border and the antennas are placed upon the shelf portion.
However, the arrangement in U.S. Pat. No. 6,118,410 creates the additional space for the shelf-portion by extending the horizontal border of the front window further in the direction towards the back of the car, which results in a significantly larger windshield area. The large windshield area is dominating the design of the vehicle front and thereby limiting the design-freedom of the vehicle. In addition, a large windshield area is often a drawback from a safety perspective, as it provides less protection than the metal car body and body structure of the vehicle.